Guardiola backs squad to respond

Chelsea’s Mount could make a return

Pep Guardiola insists he had no doubts his Manchester City players will respond after last week’s surprise defeat at Norwich.

The back-to-back Premier League champions were stunned by the promoted Canaries at Carrow Road but bounced back by sweeping aside Shakhtar Donetsk 3-0 in their Champions League opener in Ukraine.

“After what happened in the last (three) years, I didn’t have doubts,” said the City manager, whose side host struggling Watford today. “The result was good but the performance was even better.

“Of course we can lose. We know before every game we can lose. We have to have that feeling.

“But when we lose one Premier League game in eight months, why should we have doubts?”

City, who trail Premier League leaders Liverpool by five points after five games, will hope to get back to winning ways in the league when they welcome Watford to the Etihad Stadium.

Fernandinho is likely to remain in central defence after stepping in against Shakhtar following injury to John Stones, who joined Aymeric Laporte on the sidelines this week.

Chelsea midfielder Mason Mount could make a remarkable comeback from injury to face Liverpool tomorrow.

The 20-year-old, a key figure for boss Frank Lampard so far this season, looked set for a spell on the sidelines after limping off against Valencia on Tuesday night.

However, asked if Mount could be fit for the showdown with the leaders at Stamford Bridge, Lampard said: “He has got a chance. We saw the image of the tackle which made it look really bad. Hopefully it is not so bad. It is one that I will have to call later on before the game.”

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp admits they have to improve the defensive side of their game but says a lack of clean sheets is not down to a more attacking approach.

In five matches this season they have scored 15 goals and conceded five in the Premier League, with just one clean sheet – at Burnley last month – in eight matches in all competitions this season.

What cost them the title in their neckand-neck race with Pep Guardiola’s side was the number of draws (seven compared to City’s two) but Klopp insists they have not sought to rectify that this time around.

“There is no difference. We didn’t focus more on defensive or offensive things,” he said.

“The goals have been strange. There would have been a second clean sheet at Southampton if we didn’t concede that goal it would have been a clean sheet, there could have been clean sheets in other games.”

In today’s other matches, Burnley host surprise package Norwich City, Everton are at home to Sheffield United and Newcastle entertain Brighton.

Picture: AP. Pep Guardiola stated his team know they can lose before taking to the pitch.